


Safe and Sound

by fireiscatching



Category: Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-23
Updated: 2012-03-23
Packaged: 2017-11-02 10:55:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/368217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fireiscatching/pseuds/fireiscatching
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Katpee fluff surrounding a nightmare and a new experience. Written for the new movie and inspired by Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Safe and Sound

“NO!”

Katniss’ shout awakens me almost immediately. For a second, I’m disoriented and bewildered, not quite sure of where I am or what’s going on. Katniss’ anguished gasp brings me back to the present and I take her into my arms, striving to make her feel better.

“Shh, Katniss, it was just a nightmare. It’s okay. I’m here.” 

This has been constantly happening now for the past week. Katniss has been trying to hide it, but I can tell that she’s become steadily more depressed. 

I pull Katniss into my chest and let her cry into my shirt in an attempt to calm her down. I rub her back, caress her hair. This only makes her sob harder as she pushes her face further into my chest. 

Sighing, I pull away slightly from Katniss so she’ll have to look at me. My eyes find her stunning grey ones, still slightly streaming, and I stare deeply into them. 

“Are you alright?”

Katniss looks down at her lap while answering my question. “I’m fine. Just a little shaken up is all.”

I know she’s lying-Katniss is the worst liar in all of Panem. I raise an eyebrow and tilt her chin up with a finger, looking into her brilliant grey eyes again. 

“Katniss.”

My use of her name makes a bit of fire return to her eyes as she narrows them at me, showing off her fiercest glare. 

“Let’s talk about-”

“I don’t want to talk about my nightmares, Peeta,” Katniss cut across my words. “We’ve been over this,” she finishes. 

This also doesn’t surprise me- Katniss has never been an open girl, and she seldom wishes to talk about her nightmares. 

“Katniss, you know what Doctor Aurelius said- your nightmares won’t get any better unless you share them with someone else. Someone who understands. Someone who has nightmares too.”

I’m hoping that, as saccharine as I sound, my words will make her cave in and we can discuss her nightmare. I firmly believe that Doctor Aurelius is right-her nightmares won’t get better on their own-she needs to take control of them. However, Katniss is the most stubborn girl that I know, and getting her to give into my wishes might take a lot of persuading.

After a moment, Katniss simply sighs and gives me a tired look.    
“Alright,” she says. 

“Alright what?” I counter, although I’m almost certain I know what she’s talking about.

“Alright, we can talk about my nightmare,” she says quietly. 

Now feeling slightly guilty for pressuring her, I slide closer to her and wrap my arm around her shoulders. “That’s my girl,” I say, kissing the top of her head. The simple gesture coaxes a small smile out of her as she leans against me. 

I wait patiently for her to begin, not wanting to make her any more uncomfortable than I’ve already made her. Guilt creeps up my insides, eating away at me, but I keep my face calm and steady so as not to make Katniss nervous. That’s the last thing she needs-extra nervousness. 

“There was fire,” Katniss starts. “Fire like the fire we saw in the arena, only worse. This fire was coming from the sky, and it was coming fast. It was descending on us, and I couldn’t...” she trails off, unable to complete her sentence. 

“You couldn’t what?” I say, trying to encourage her. Instead, I seem to make her more depressed and distressed than she was before as she quietly answers, “I wasn’t able to save you. I was...I was with P-Prim, Finnick...Rue, Cinna, and-and you. We tried to escape, but the fire was too quick. Prim and Rue were the first to fall back, then Cinna, Finnick and finally you. I made it out but I couldn’t save anyone else,” she finishes, tears trickling down her cheeks. 

My heart breaks for the defeated girl in my arms. Katniss has confessed to me that she’s no stranger to nightmares, but it still hurts me to see her in such pain. I know how guilty she feels for our friends and family that have died, and my persistent badgering to talk about it isn’t helping her. Nevertheless, I pull her closer and stroke her hair, wanting her to know that everything will be alright. 

I tip Katniss’ head up and wipe the tears still trickling from her eyes away from her cheeks. Her tears stop coming and I place a hand on either side of her delicate face. Katniss’ steely gray eyes turn soft as they meet my own. She looks so beautiful, so wonderful, that I can’t help but lean in and kiss her.

Her initial response is fearful and uncertain, but she responds after a moment, moving her warm lips with mine. After a moment I pull away to look into Katniss’ eyes again. 

“Katniss Mellark,” I start, wanting my wife to understand how serious I am about this. 

This makes a tiny smile make its way onto her face. I stroke her soft cheek to try and bring her beautiful smile out even more. 

“I will never, ever, let anything hurt you. I will always make sure that you are safe. I promise you that I will do anything to keep you both safe,” I say, placing my free hand on her swollen stomach. 

Katniss looks up at me, her eyes shining with tears again, this time with happiness. She throws her arms around my neck, pulling me into a tight hug. I wrap my arms around her waist just as fiercely, trying to convey to her how much she means to me and how much I love her. 

“You’re too good for me, Peeta Mellark,” she says before her lips come crashing down onto my own.

The kiss is comforting. Usually, I’m the one who initiates the romantic part of our relationship since Katniss is hardly romantic. However, her actions speak volumes louder than her words and I understand what she is trying to convey to me with this kiss. She is showing me how much she cares for me, how much she loves me. 

When we break apart, she asks me, “We’ll make it through this safe and sound. Real or not real?”

I smile slightly at her use of the little ‘game’ Katniss and I played when I was recovering from my hijacking. 

“Real,” I reply as I wrap my arm around my wife’s shoulders again. She leans into my chest, and I rest my head on top of hers. 

Things may not be perfect for us. There are still dangers ahead. But it’s okay.We’re okay. We’ll always be safe and sound together.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you SO much for reading! Means the world!


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